What is enterprise mobility and how can you benefit from it

Enterprise mobility is a growing business trend that focuses on enabling employees to do their jobs from anywhere by having access to various mobile devices, applications and software solutions.

With mobile devices becoming more and more powerful with every new generation, a large number of businesses are starting to provide their employees with mobile solutions that are able to partially or completely substitute the traditional ways of doing their job and the standard tools they used, but also to upgrade the business processes within your company.

This shift is called enterprise mobility and, due to its numerous benefits for both companies and employees, it is quickly becoming a core aspect in business strategies of companies that are focused on long-term growth and continuous improvement.

Key aspects of enterprise mobility

When it comes to the implementation of enterprise mobility into a business strategy, there are 4 core pillars it stands upon.

1. Company stakeholder’s willingness to accept enterprise mobility

This is the basis for all the other pillars – ensuring that key stakeholders from a company understand what enterprise mobility is all about and the changes it brings, as well as the benefits a company can reap (we’ll talk about them in the next section) by implementing it into their business strategy.

As the implementation process should not be considered a one and done kind of thing, but an important part of company’s growth that needs to tie in closely with their overall strategy, it is imperative that people making key decisions are aligned and that their expectations are clearly defined.

2. Defining processes that can be enhanced through the use of mobile tech

When key stakeholders are aligned and when they understand the benefits the company can get by implementing enterprise mobility, it is time to analyze the company and define the process or processes that should be upgraded with mobile technology. The easiest way to perform this process of analysis and definition is product discovery – an organized set of activities that involve all stakeholders and helps them dig deep into the business.

The output of this product discovery process is a detailed list of business processes that are primed for mobile implementation, as well as a fully fleshed out mobile solution that should be developed.

3. Mobile devices such as smartphones and tablets

As the entire premise of enterprise mobility lies upon enabling employees to do their jobs from anywhere, mobile devices that are powerful enough to substitute traditional tools are a key component of implementation. As modern mobile devices can be used to perform a wide variety of different tasks without a problem, when it comes to implementation of enterprise mobility, choosing the right device for the job usually ends up as deciding on the look and feel (something premium like Apple’s iPad or something more affordable) and defining the right specs that will fit the application’s functionalities, as well as choosing between a smartphone and a tablet, and then picking one made from a manufacturer of your choice.

4. Custom mobile application or a mobile software suite

The final and arguably the most important element of enterprise mobility is software your employees will be using to perform their jobs. This mobile application or an entire software suite of mobile tools should be powerful enough to substitute the traditional tools employees used, but also to enhance those business processes defined in the second pillar.

One of the most common ways of implementing enterprise mobility solutions into a company is to create a custom mobile application with a set of features that are specifically tailored to a company’s business processes – in a way that complements or substitutes them, and makes them simpler and more efficient.

What can your company get by embracing enterprise mobility

There are a number of very clear and direct benefits your company can gain by implementing and taking advantage of enterprise mobility and all of its aspects.

Increased productivity

The sheer fact that your employees can use mobile solutions to work from any place and manage their work environment means their overall productivity is very likely to increase.

Better communication

Custom mobile applications for businesses can feature a wide variety of communication tools within them, which provide a real-time connection to your central management system and other tools you use, as well as other team members.

Higher efficiency

Mobile devices and mobile applications can provide your employees with all of the information they need to successfully do their jobs. There are no more lost papers or misplaced folders – everything your employees need is at every moment just a few taps or clicks away.

Streamlined workflow

By connecting the mobile application to your central management or sales or ordering or any other kind of system, and providing a direct link between it and employees’ mobile devices, you make your processes much faster and easier to perform.

Better user experience and higher user satisfaction

Enterprise mobility solutions enable your employees to provide real-time assistance to your customers. The faster you can help your customers, the higher their satisfaction will be, and the higher will be the chance of them buying your product or using your services.

Increased security and data control

As mobile solutions can come with advanced security options that can prevent unauthorized access and guard from various types of attacks, you can be certain that your company information is safe. They also give you remote access to connected mobile devices, which enables you to lock devices and erase data in case the device itself gets lost, stolen or in any way compromised.

And the employees

Enterprise mobility can have a positive effect on your employees’ work-life balance as it offers them more flexibility and choice when it comes to doing their job. And that can lead to higher employee satisfaction and decreased employee turnover. Some employees also have a higher rate of productivity when they work from home or a place other than the office – and enterprise mobility gives them a chance to better manage their work environment.

Also, depending on the features and functionalities of mobile solution that is implemented, enterprise mobility can empower your employees by providing them with a platform through which they can express their ideas and talk to other members of the company about important company-related topics.

‘That wouldn’t work in my industry’

While, at first, some types of companies and industries might seem like a more logical fit for enterprise mobility, the truth is that almost any company can find a process or a specific type of work done by their employees, that can be made more efficient by incorporating an enterprise mobility approach and augmenting employees with mobile solutions. Yes, companies in the IT sector that have started to embrace the notion of remote work almost to the point of having no office spaces at all – they are the prime candidates for (and users of) enterprise mobility solutions. But the fact is that most companies have at least one process that could greatly benefit from a mobile application.

Some of the clearest examples of processes that can be made more efficient through the use of enterprise mobility solutions are:

  1. internal communication among employees
  2. onboarding employees
  3. different types of sales and ordering processes
  4. empowering field force teams

Internal communication and onboarding on their own, especially within larger companies, can be very complex and can lead to employees missing critical information or not being included in the loop whatsoever. Couple that with traditional communication and onboarding tools like emails, messengers, task managers or surveys that aren’t customized for your business – things can get out of hand quite rapidly. On the other hand, a custom mobile application, for example in the form of a private social network, can be tailored to your exact needs and the process you want to build within your company. Through it, you can precisely specify how communication channels within your company work and what onboarding aspects should each new employee go through, and you can ultimately make sure that all of the employees are receiving the information they need in order to successfully do their jobs.

As for sales and empowering your field force – just think of having a team of sales reps armed with nothing more than tablets and mobile applications. Instead of calling potential prospects from the office, they can be in the field talking directly to customers and showing them how your products work instead of explaining it. Add to that the fact that the mobile app on the tablet is directly connected to your central system that handles orders and sales, and can process a deal in an instant – and you have quite a big upgrade on a traditional sales process.

How to start implementing enterprise mobility

The first step to implementing enterprise mobility into your company is to analyze your business processes and define the ones that would benefit the most from enterprise mobility. As enterprise mobile applications are starting to become more and more prevalent in modern and progressive businesses, you too should see how your company might embrace one and reap the benefits of enterprise mobility.

If you need assistance in defining business processes mentioned above, as well as the exact type of a mobile application your company might use, we suggest you conduct product discovery. It is a process during which key stakeholders from your company and a set of our experts go through a series of workshops and structured activities – they dig deep into your business, analyze it and help you define the right mobile solution for your company.